Nottingham Forest and Chelsea will go head-to-head in the Premier League at the City Ground on Saturday afternoon, with Ange Postecoglou clinging on to his job.
Forest are winless in their last eight games in all competitions, and fell to a 2-0 defeat to Newcastle United in their last clash before the international break, leaving Postecoglou on the brink of the sack. Enzo Maresca’s side, on the other hand, are riding a wave of momentum following a late 2-1 win over Liverpool in their last game, which came after a 1-0 win over Jose Mourinho’s Benfica in the Champions League.
Both sides have some injury concerns to deal with that will leave the managers with some decisions to make, and this is how GIVEMESPORT expect the teams to line up.
Nottingham Forest Team News
Postecoglou will once again be without first-choice right-back Ola Aina as he continues his recovery from hamstring surgery.
But despite missing recent games, Forest will be hopeful of being able to select Oleksandr Zinchenko and Douglas Luiz following their respective adductor and hamstring problems.
|
Nottingham Forest Injuries and Suspensions |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Player |
Injury |
Potential Return Date |
|
Ola Aina |
Hamstring |
03/01/2026 |
|
Oleksandr Zinchenko |
Adductor |
18/10/2025 |
|
Douglas Luiz |
Hamstring |
18/10/2025 |
Postecoglou Drops Team News Update
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Postecoglou shared an update on his squad ahead of the game.
“It is always important to win the next game, we are facing a very good opponent.
“We’ve had a good few weeks training and everyone has come back [from the international break] in good condition.
“Douglas Luiz, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Murillo are all available for selection tomorrow.”
Nottingham Forest Predicted XI
- Nottingham Forest Predicted XI: Sels; Williams, Murillo, Milenkovic, Zinchenko; Douglas Luiz, Anderson; Bakwa, Gibbs-White, Ndoye; Igor Jesus.
- Nottingham Forest Predicted Substitutes: Victor (GK), Morato (DEF), Cunha (DEF), Sangare (MID), Yates (MID), McAtee (MID), Hudson-Odoi (FWD), Wood (FWD), Hutchinson (FWD).
Luiz and Zinchenko are likely to come back into the side as Postecoglou chases his first win in charge, so they should both start this game.
It’s also likely that Igor Jesus gets the nod up front, which could see £180,000-a-week duo Chris Wood and Callum Hudson-Odoi on the bench.
Chelsea Team News
The Blues are set for an extended period of time without star man Cole Palmer due to the groin injury that saw him miss a number of games before the international break. Levi Colwill and Liam Delap are long-term absentees with a knee and hamstring problem respectively, but several stars could return.
Trevoh Chalobah has served his suspension while all of Tosin, Wesley Fofana, Andrey Santos and Reece James are expected to be fit. Enzo Fernandez left the Argentina camp with a knee problem, but he should be fine to play.
|
Chelsea Injuries and Suspensions |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Player |
Injury |
Potential Return Date |
|
Levi Colwill |
Knee |
01/06/2026 |
|
Benoit Badiashile |
Muscle |
03/12/2025 |
|
Liam Delap |
Hamstring |
22/11/2025 |
|
Cole Palmer |
Groin |
22/11/2025 |
|
Andrey Santos |
Knock |
18/10/2025 |
|
Pedro Neto |
Knock |
18/10/2025 |
|
Reece James |
Shin |
18/10/2025 |
|
Enzo Fernandez |
Knee |
18/10/2025 |
|
Wesley Fofana |
Concussion |
18/10/2025 |
|
Tosin |
Calf |
18/10/2025 |
|
Mykhailo Mudryk |
Doping Ban |
Unknown |
|
Dario Essugo |
Thigh |
Unknown |
Maresca Drops Team News Update
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Maresca shared an update on his squad ahead of the game.
“Unfortunately, he [Palmer] needs to be out for probably six more weeks, this is the update.
“We try to protect Cole as much as we can and the most important thing is that when he comes back, he is fully fit. We hope the six weeks will be enough, but it’s a problem that we need to look at step by step, week by week, but for sure he is going to be okay.
“They [Caicedo, Fernandez and Neto] didn’t take part in the session yesterday but we will see if they can train today. Otherwise, they would be out for tomorrow. Tosin Adarabioyo, Wesley Fofana and Andrey Santos are all back”
“Benoit [Badiashile] will be out until December. He is injured again with a muscle problem. He was doing fantastic, showing how good he is and we will wait for him.”
Chelsea Predicted XI
- Chelsea Predicted XI: Sanchez; James, Chalobah, Fofana, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Estevao, Buonanotte, Neto; J. Pedro.
- Chelsea Predicted Substitutes: Jorgensen (GK), Hato (DEF), Gusto (DEF), Tosin (DEF), Santos (MID), Lavia (MID), Garnacho (FWD), Gittens (FWD), George (FWD).
Maresca is likely to welcome captain Reece James back into the starting lineup, while Brazil star Estevao should get a start after his goal against Liverpool and brace against South Korea during the break.
That means £285,000-a-week duo Jorrel Hato and Alejandro Garnacho could find themselves on the substitutes bench as a result.
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